General Electric sees 2019 profit below estimates

Shares of the company, hammered by tens of billions in write-offs over the past year and one of Wall Street's worst performing stocks, were down 3.2 percent at $9.70 in premarket tradingREUTERS | March 14, 2019, 17:22 IST

General Electric forecast adjusted earnings of 50 cents to 60 cents per share in its 2019 outlook on Thursday, below analysts' expectations of around 70 cents as new Chief Executive Larry Culp ploughs ahead with asset sales and restructuring.

Shares of the company, hammered by tens of billions in write-offs over the past year and one of Wall Street's worst performing stocks, were down 3.2 percent at $9.70 in premarket trading.

The U.S. industrial conglomerate, which spooked investors last week by warning of a net cash outflow from its industrial businesses this year, said it expects adjusted industrial free cash flow of between negative $2 billion and flat. (https://invent.ge/2HkbYTq)

"GE's challenges in 2019 are complex but clear," Culp said in a statement.

The company said it expects adjusted industrial free cash flow to be positive in 2020, with the pace of improvement accelerating in 2021.

Investors are looking closely at GE's cash and earnings.

Since taking over the reins at the struggling industrial conglomerate last year, Culp has taken a series of quick actions to restore profit and boost its stock, which has tumbled to less than a third of its value since mid-2016.

Last year, Culp slashed the company's dividend to just a penny per share. He also led the sale of the company's biopharma unit to Danaher Corp in February for $21.4 billion, proceeds of which it will use to trim its debt of $121 billion as of December.

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